Chapter 124: Testing their strength. “So tell me brother Jun, how did you meet your wife? If you don't mind me saying it, the two of you seem rather young to already be married.” After spending a few days traveling alongside Yao Shui and the others, they were all sitting around the table inside the wagon and eating some light snacks while drinking a fruity wine. Yao Yazhu turned towards Yao Jun as she spoke, the light of curiosity shining in her eyes. “Haha, it's a rather boring story actually. I was wandering around the outskirts of the Southern Tundra a few years back. While wandering, I came upon a small tribe of nomads that was being attacked by a Demonic beast.” Yao Jun let out a slight chuckle, gripping Guo Luo's hand as he spoke, looking like he was reliving an old memory. The story he was telling them now was a story that they had already come up with several days ago, before he had even met this group of people. “I lent them my aid and we managed to drive off the Demonic beast. As thanks, the tribe allowed me to stay with them for a few days and partake in a feast. It was at this feast that I met Little Luo. Since we hit it off immediately, she decided to follow me on my wanderings. We haven't officially gotten married yet, but I already consider her my wife.” Yao Jun ended the story by sending Guo Luo a loving glance. This was a story the two of them had come up with to fool anyone who might ask the two of them why they were traveling together. “A wonderful story. Once you do decide to get married, I hope that you don't forget to invite us for a drink or two.” The pudgy Yao Gang let out a wistful sigh, raising his glass towards Yao Jun and Guo Luo. There was no one who didn't wish to find a kindred spirit on the long road of cultivation. “I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare!” Yao Jun put on a bright smile and let out a loud laugh, raising his own glass and clanking it against Yao Gang's. Since they were traveling with them and hoping to learn more about the hidden realm, Yao Jun and Guo Luo had decided to act very friendly towards them. While they were chatting, the entire wagon was suddenly struck by something, resulting in it shaking strongly and stopping in it's tracks. While Yao Jun and the others were slightly shaken, none of them were too shocked. This was not the first time this had happened in these last few days. “Halt! Hand over your valuables and we will let you pass!” Just as they expected, a rough and grating voice sounded out from the outside of the wagon. Since so many people were heading up north, a large amount of bandits had entrenched themselves around the various roads that were heading north, stopping all that tried to pass. “Brother Jun, sister Luo, I believe it is your time to chase away these pests?” Yao Shui turned towards Yao Jun and Guo Luo, a faint smile on his face. They had already decided an order on who would deal with bandits when they showed up. The others in the group had already dealt with the previous bandit groups by using the name of the Yao clan, so it was now Yao Jun and Guo Luo's turn to deal with the bandits. Yao Jun's face held a smile as he nodded at Yao Shui, but while he spoke, his mental energy sank into Guo Luo's mind, allowing the two of them to communicate without anyone else noticing. “Luo'er, don't use all your strength. Simply show off that you can create some illusions.” Yao Jun went straight to the point. He did not want to let Yao Shui and the others know exactly how much strength he and Guo Luo possessed, as he could not completely trust them. It was always best to hide some things from people you could not completely trust. “Do you think they could become enemies?” Guo Luo could guess what Yao Jun was thinking. If Yao Shui and the others became their enemies at a later date, it would be disastrous if they knew how much strength Yao Jun and Guo Luo had. Especially since Yao Jun and Guo Luo did not know anything about the strength Yao Shui and the others possessed. “I don't know, but it is best to err on the side of caution. If they do end up becoming our enemies, we will have more cards up our sleeve.” Whether or not Yao Shui and the others would become their enemies was not just uncertain, it was even slightly unlikely. But Yao Jun was not willing to take the risk. The last time he had taken a risk, it had nearly cost Guo Luo her life. Yao Jun and Guo Luo left the wagon and faced the group of bandits waiting for them outside. There were only around 12 bandits, but Yao Jun could see that the highest cultivation level amongst these bandits was impressively a person at the middle stage of the 2nd Mortal Earth, even higher than them. Because of this man, none of the other people that followed the people from the Yao clan dared to move. After all, the highest cultivation level amongst these people was only a single woman at the late stage of the 1st Mortal Earth. “You guy's should leave, I am in no mood to partake in a slaughter.” Yao Jun shook his head and spoke to the bandits, Guo Luo standing next to him and bringing out some illusory copies of herself that wandered the area. Since each illusion looked completely real, no one could tell which one was the real her. Both Yao Jun and Guo Luo were capable of killing people at the middle stage of the 2nd Mortal Earth, Yao Jun thanks to overwhelming strength and Guo Luo thanks to her ability to switch places with her illusions, so neither of them thought of this group of bandits as a threat. “Hand over your valuables and no one needs to get hurt!” The bandit leader felt that Guo Luo's power was rather headache inducing, but he refused to back down now, shouting out loudly once more. If the opposite party refused to hand over their valuables, they would just have to engage in a battle. Just after the bandit leader shouted out, he noticed Yao Jun waving his hand, and a terrible feeling of unease spread through his body. A slight breeze suddenly blew over him and the people around him, and he felt a burning sensation on his throat and hand. Looking down, he noticed that not only was there now a small wound on his throat, he had also lost the middle finger on his right hand. Not just him, everyone else in his group had also lost the middle finger on the right hand, the finger dropping down and rolling slightly on the ground. “Leave. Otherwise the next thing to roll will be your heads.” Yao Jun's eyes bore into the bandit leader, causing cold sweat to spread on his back. How could the bandit leader not realize that Yao Jun was not just making empty threats. If he chose to say anything else, he did not doubt that his head would separate from his neck. “Forgive us sir, and thank you for showing mercy. We will leave you be.” The bandit leader quickly bent his body, giving Yao Jun a deep bow and apologizing. The other bandits around him quickly mimicked him, dipping into a deep bow. After all, none of them wanted to die here. After apologizing, the bandits quickly turned around and fled into the woods around them. None of them wanted to risk moving too slow and accidentally making Yao Jun change his mind. A simple wave of his hand took one of their fingers, another wave and their heads would probably roll. After making sure that all the bandits had fled, the wagons started moving again, as if nothing had happened. Yao Jun and Guo Luo returned to the inside of the wagon, sitting down around the table and continuing to drink the wine. “There was no need to spare them brother Jun, no one will mind if we just kill such bandits.” Yao Shui looked to the outside of the wagon as he spoke, his words causing Yao Jun to sneer inwardly. When they had encountered bandits earlier, Yao Shui and the others had dealt with them by using the name of the Yao clan, forcing the bandits to flee. But now he said that there was no need for Yao Jun to spare them? It was clearly just that Yao Shui felt that he had not seen enough of Yao Jun's power, so he wanted him to fight a more protracted battle and show off more of his power. “I don't like starting a needless massacre, peace is always best. Me and Little Luo also can't use our powers for too long, as they will start showing their side effects if we do.” Despite his thoughts, Yao Jun still held a smile as he shook his head and spoke with a sigh, putting all the blame on a nonexistent side effect of his powers. He was now also completely certain that Yao Shui was trying to test how strong Yao Jun was, most likely to see if he is useful for exploring the hidden realm. “No wonder. Then I must commend brother Jun on his quick thinking.” Yao Shui nodded his head slowly, his face still holding that faint smile. He did not doubt Yao Jun's words, after all, how powerful could a wandering cultivator be? He was someone from the Yao clan, the amount of resources and training he had access to far surpassed Yao Jun. “Not at all, I have simply faced bandits quite a few times before, so I have gotten used to using this way to deal with them.” Yao Jun shook his head in response, coming up with a convenient yet believable lie. The group did not linger on the topic any longer, returning to drinking and eating, casually chatting. In a few days, they would reach Falling Boulder City, the place where the hidden realm had appeared.